New Cheney Glass owners will keep fixing what breaks

Dennis Baumgarten needed to find time to check off a sizeable list of chores at home.

The only way he knew it could get done was shedding his day job as owner of Cheney Glass, a business he recently sold to fellow Cheney residents, James Powell and Abigail Bond.

When asked what he would do with all the spare time he'll have in retirement, Baumgarten's quick reply was, "What spare time, I don't have any spare time?"

Typical of many people associated with the building business, he has plenty of work at his own house, "Two years worth," Baumgarten said.

Baumgarten and his wife, Theresa, have been married 40 years and had owned the business since May 1999. His wife's uncle ran the business before, since February 1985.

It's not all work now that he's shed the many hours spent each week fixing what others have broken. Baumgarten said he likes to hunt and fish, fitting it in when he can. In retirement, travel figures in the plans, too, he said, singling out Alaska as the No. 1 destination. "I've been there once and just want to go back again."

Baumgarten said he saw the new owners, Powell, a 1999 Cheney High School grad and Bond from the class of 2000, as the right people to continue where he left off. "Jimmy just fits right into that," he said of his effort to "Put Cheney first in everything we do."

The business enjoys a nice niche, Baumgarten said. The company is the only one of its kind within miles. And as with other small businesses who strive to be successful in the shadow of Spokane, "(The) secret of success for the company is taking care of customers," he added.

While Powell is new to the company on a personal level, the former 10-year veteran of the printing business with Liberty Business Forms worked closely with Cheney Glass in his most recent career stop.

He was with Cheney Real Estate Management for the previous six years dealing with repairs and remodeling. That's how he and Baumgarten got to know with each other. They estimate that Cheney Glass supplied over 450 replacement windows.

"College kids kept me employed breaking stuff, unclogging stuff," Powell said. "I don't want to unclog stuff anymore," he added.

One thing the new owners do not want to fix is the strong reputation the business has established over the past 30 years.

"We're going to continue the tradition Dennis has had, take care of people," Powell said.

And the one thing Powell said he learned from Baumgarten is, "Falling glass, do not catch it, let it fall."

MORE INFO

Cheney Glass is located at 819 W. First St. To contact Cheney Glass, call (509) 235-2747 or email cheneyglass@gmail.com.

Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.